Pressure on Azad to prolong Telangana talks

HYDERABAD: Political parties in the state are waiting with interest to know what the two leaders, who have different political hues but are close friends, will do to clear the clouds of political uncertainty in the state.

The buddies are AICC general secretary and Union health minister Ghulam Nabhi Aazad and Telangana Rashtra Samiti chief K Chandrasekhar Rao.

The TRS chief is building pressure on the Centre by camping in Delhi and has decided to extend his stay in the national capital for some more days while Azad, who is in-charge of the AP Congress affairs, is now in the state participating in several programmes and probing the minds of party leaders and members of the Kiran Kumar Reddy cabinet.

In the coming days, TRS will raise the political heat in the national capital. Rao has been saying openly that he will not accept any new proposal on Telangana and that the Centre should start the process of implementing its December 9, 2009 statement.

He is confident that the Congress leadership will inevitably agree to his demand and ask the Centre to issue another statement on Telangana which Rao expects by September 20.

According to a family member, the TRS chief knows well that such a statement alone will fetch votes for the Congress in the region.

In coastal Andhra the party would play the Kapu card to derive electoral benefit, he said. Significantly, Azad's close aid and former minister Md Ali Shabber has announced that he will contest the next election only in a separate Telangana state.

But there are leaders in the TRS who suspect that the Congress high command has asked Azad to prolong the consultations till Parliament budget session sometime in February next year when the government intends to take a final call on the issue.

They say that Azad is working under pressure and since the party high command will act on his advice, what he will advise is a million dollar question.

According TRS sources, Azad and Rao are close and family friends which is not widely known. 'We participated in several functions at Azad's residence' one of KCR's family members said.

Aware of his friendship with KCR, the AICC had appointed Azad as the party's in-charge of the state affairs ahead of the 2004 general elections and Azad had played a key role in stitching the Congress-TRS alliance.

He was replaced by Vayalar Ravi and Veerappa Moily for some period but was brought back last year as party incharge for the state. What he is going to do this time will be keenly watched.